This is the second vertical AI BL drama I've sat through, and honestly I went in knowing better. I had it on while I was doing cardio at the gym, and what struck me was just how much the plot echoed the last one I watched. Same step brother romance angle, same mystery girlfriend showing up near the end, same extra guy pining after one of the leads. Genuinely the only thing going for it was the runtime, the whole thing wrapped up in forty five minutes flat. The setup kicks off with Finn moving schools because his mom just married into money. He finds out his new step brother Aiden goes to the same place, and he's warned to keep his distance from him. Their first run in at school is rocky, just like you'd expect, but there's this odd pull between them neither can shake off. Finn keeps telling himself not to read into it because Aiden's straight and openly homophobic. Things shift when some kids start bullying Finn and the student council president, Ryan, steps in to ...
Set against the backdrop of amateur soccer in Cuba, Delantero is a pretty solid coming-of-age story centered on a young guy trying to figure out—and at first, totally deny—his own sexuality. It’s a quick watch at just over an hour long, so it doesn't demand too much of your time. Interestingly, it was originally released on Cuban TV years ago but only finally made its way over to the US in 2025.
The story follows a teenager named Freddie, who lives with his dad in a small Cuban town. Freddie is deep in the closet, and while his dad is oblivious, the local rumor mill is already starting to whisper that he’s gay. After Freddie comes home one day all bruised and bloody, his worried father demands to know what happened, but Freddie covers it up by claiming he was fighting over a girl. To keep him safe from further trouble, his dad sends him to Havana to stay with his aunt. While there, he hits it off with a guy on a local soccer team who convinces him to join the squad. However, drama follows him when a player from an opposing team finds out Freddie is gay and uses it to stir up trouble. We eventually learn that Freddie actually had a boyfriend (or at least a very close friend) back home who made a move on him, which is what sparked that original fight. Now in Havana, Freddie finds a much more welcoming environment; his friend's parents are totally non-judgmental, and between them and his supportive aunt, Freddie finally starts to feel okay being himself.
I think the title Delantero—which means "forward" in soccer—is actually a perfect metaphor for a coming-out journey. The whole process of coming out can feel completely overwhelming, especially when it involves family, and the movie does a great job of making you feel that emotional weight. Most of us can probably see a bit of ourselves in Freddie, and since he’s a soccer player, it highlights that specific struggle of being queer in the hyper-masculine world of sports. The acting across the board is actually really good, and I especially loved the quiet, sweet moments between Freddie and his aunt, like when they’re just making coffee or chatting. Those little bits of family care felt very authentic.
That being said, you can definitely tell this was made on a shoestring budget. I really wish they had given Freddie’s character a bit more depth to make him feel more well-rounded. I was also left with a few questions, like whether his friendship with Damian had a romantic undertone or was just strictly platonic. It also would’ve been helpful if the script clarified his relationship with the long-haired guy—the one who tried to kiss him and whose parents invited him over for dinner. In the end, it feels like a long short film about how exhausting it is to live in the closet and how much mental and physical stress it puts on you.
It's a low-budget but heartfelt look at the struggle for acceptance in a sports-driven culture, proving that having a support system changes everything. (5.5/10)
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